Could Play Room Expand To More African Markets Perhaps In Place Of Nicktoons?

Play Room, a South African based children's channel operated by Ngwato Nkosi Group offering a mixture animated and live action shows. Unlike Newzroom Afrika and Movie Room which are available across Sub-Saharan Africa, Play Room is confined to South Africa.

Not long ago, Canal+ had finalized it's acquisition of MultiChoice and expressed the notion of telling Africa's story to the world. They have been distributing regional brands like Africa Magic Hausa and Yoruba to Canal+ Afrique subscribers, these channels were exclusive to DStv.

Nicktoons which serves as a contender to Play Room had also ramped up its local offering with Nick In Your Language and NickMusic. As seen with MTV Base and BET come December 2025, those are likely to be shuttered and Nicktoons faces the possibility of audience fragmentation.

In recent years, MultiChoice had widened the reach of Nickelodeon and Nick Jr. to its DStv Family and Compact consumers making Nicktoons obsolete. SpongeBob's Zulu accent and the house vibes on NickMusic is what attracted viewers to the network. 

Nickelodeon, Nick Jr. and Nicktoons form part of the Pan-European group but only Nicktoons comes with a local variation while the rest aligns with other regions. Even if Nicktoons were to close, it's less likely that Nickelodeon would distribute this content.

Play Room serving as a contender with its own lineup of content can bolster the lineup for consumers in these markets.